Miss Benney, from the Actors and Actresses series (N45, Type 8) for Virginia Brights Cigarettes 1885 - 1891

This delicate photograph by Allen & Ginter presents Miss Benney, an actress, adorned in what appears to be a kimono, holding a fan, as part of a series for Virginia Brights Cigarettes. The fan, a symbol of status and refinement, and the kimono, an exotic garment, evoke the allure of the Orient, a Western fascination that was gaining momentum during the late 19th century. Consider how the fan, a seemingly simple object, has appeared across art history, from ancient Egyptian depictions of royalty being fanned to Renaissance paintings of noblewomen holding ornate fans. In each instance, the fan carries connotations of power, elegance, and a sense of control over one’s environment. Here, the fan and the kimono are not merely props, they are laden with cultural significance. The adoption of Eastern motifs in the West reveals our human impulse to explore and interpret unfamiliar cultures. But it also exposes a tendency to project our desires and fantasies onto the ‘other’. As we reflect on Miss Benney's image, let us remember that symbols are in perpetual flux, their meanings reshaped by each new context, each new gaze. The past echoes in the present, and the present transforms the past.